This weekend President Obama is in Lisbon for a series of crucial international summits with NATO, NATO-Russia and the European Union.  These transatlantic meetings will have a direct bearing on American national security, specifically as it relates to Afghanistan, Iran, nuclear weapons, missile defense, Russia and overall NATO strategy.  Despite positive momentum leading into these meetings, as symbolized by the U.S.-Russia "reset," which restored relations from their post-Cold War nadir in 2008, new strains are emerging, particularly those being caused by partisan politics in the U.S. Senate.  Specifically, while the president is abroad pursuing America's interests, those playing politics at home are actively attempting to undermine them.  As the Washington Post reports this morning on the New START nuclear agreement between our two countries, "Russians are mystified. They can't quite believe that the U.S. Senate might fail to ratify the nuclear arms treaty, and they see no good from such an outcome. The list of possible harmful effects they cite encompasses a minefield of global concerns: no more cooperation on Iran, a setback for progressive tendencies in Russia, new hurdles for Russian membership in the World Trade Organization, a terrible example for nuclear countries such as China and India, dim prospects for better NATO relations. And to top it off, the United States and its president would look ridiculous."  America's security and interests should outweigh political positioning at home, and while the president is in Europe promoting American interests, partisan politicians in Washington make achieving this goal much more difficult.

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Today, at the Council on Foreign Relations, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave a speech on the America's diplomatic engagement and global leadership. 

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Over the past several months, Senators have methodically reviewed and scrutinized the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty and its supporting documents.  Multiple congressional committees have held an extensive series of hearings, with two additional sessions slated for next week.  Throughout this process, Senators have heard from our nation's most respected military and national security experts from both sides of the aisle. Their message has been clear:  The United States Senate must ratify this treaty and should do so promptly.

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On issues ranging from nonproliferation to terrorism to U.S. policy toward Iran, neoconservatives and far-right hawks have attempted to hijack their own party’s agenda, bucking bipartisan opinion and trashing decades of conservative expertise and accomplishment. When the minority leader of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee speaks out in public against his own leadership, a trend is afoot that is dangerous for the country and carries serious political risk. On the range of issues that the hard right has chosen to politicize, it risks defying views widely held by Americans, and in the end, marginalizing only themselves.

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Today in Prague, President Obama and Russian President Medvedev signed an historic new arms control treaty.  The New START agreement, which replaces the original 1991 agreement that expired in December 2009, is the most significant arms control agreement in nearly two decades as it reduces the amount of both countries' strategic warheads.  The treaty is part of the President's commitment to reduce that dangers posed by nuclear weapons to the world in order to advance American security in the 21^st Century. 

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Tomorrow in Prague, President Obama and Russian President Medvedev will sign the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), which will be the most significant arms control agreement in nearly two decades.  This will take place almost one year to the day from when President Obama unveiled his historic vision for reducing the threat of nuclear weapons in the 21^st Century. This historic agreement stands on its own as a significant arms control achievement, the result of many months of effective diplomacy carried out both by the President and his team to advance our country's security.  Following the tradition of leaders on arms control, such as Presidents Kennedy, Reagan, and George H.W. Bush, President Obama has demonstrated that his Administration will protect the United States by reducing the threat posed by nuclear weapons.  The signing of tomorrow's treaty represents a major step in that direction. 

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Monday, April 5, marks the one year anniversary of President Obama's historic unveiling of his 21^st century nonproliferation agenda.  The week of the anniversary will be marked by significant steps.  First, the signing in Prague of a New START Treaty that provides binding, verifiable limits on Russian nuclear weapons - reducing both sides' arsenals to levels not seen since the Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations while improving U.S. intelligence on Russia's nuclear capabilities.  Second, the Administration will unveil a Nuclear Posture Review that communicates both how this Administration views the limited but important role of nuclear weapons in ensuring our security, and how it intends to keep our arsenal safe and effective.  Third, in ten days Washington will welcome forty world leaders for a ground-breaking summit on the safety of nuclear materials - in an age of terrorism, the most important security threat we face.  This ambitious agenda seeks to make up for eight years of neglect from President Obama's predecessor. 

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Some specifics have begun to emerge on a new nuclear arms reduction treaty that Presidents Obama and Medvedev will sign on April 8 in Prague.  The completion of the agreement, which is the largest arms control agreement in nearly two decades, demonstrates clear and concrete action in both protecting American security and advancing our global nonproliferation goals while restoring America's international leadership and standing.  Prominent national security leaders and foreign policy experts from both sides of the aisle urge its quick passage through the Senate.  Despite the long history of bipartisan backing for nuclear arms control that dates back to the days of John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan, some extreme conservatives are attempting to politicize the debate in an attempt to deny President Obama a victory. 

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